Panang curry definitely did not win my heart, although the flavor was good. The beef was overdone and tough. And the seafood green curry — a mix of shrimp, whitefish, mussels, scallops, and squid mixed with green peas, bell pepper, and fresh Thai basil in a potent curry sauce — was generally tasty, although the shrimp were too chewy. Also, as much as I like spiciness, this dish was so hot that I could see some people being unhappy about it. Latitude Eight should either ask how hot we like it or at least give a heat warning on the menu.

Besides those dishes, everything else I tried was cooked just right. A fresh piece of seared ahi tuna, coated in sesame seeds, was drizzled with lip-smacking black bean chile sauce. A veggie stir-fry — with fried tofu triangles, eggplant, Thai basil, pumpkin, red pepper, and carrots — also contained some tiny, salty beans that my server couldn't identify, even after she'd asked the kitchen. I'm guessing they were fermented soybeans, but no matter what they were, they added a great flavor.

Fried rice can be a bore, but here, it was jazzed up with chicken, sliced sweet sausage, a few grilled shrimp, pineapple, raisins, and cashews — a nice mix of textures with an addicting savory-sweet dynamic. It was seasoned with curry, but just barely. And I was even impressed with the pad Thai, a dish I've eaten too many times to count. Tossed with chicken, shrimp, sprouts, peanuts, and cilantro, the noodles were tender but not too soft, while a generous dose of tangy sauce made every bite juicy.

Latitude Eight returned to tradition come dessert time, offering two popular standards: coconut sticky rice and fried plantains. The former was teamed with lots of ripe mango, while the latter got the deluxe treatment, with golden fried coconut batter, kaffir lime syrup, and a dusting of powdered sugar. Both tasted as good as they looked.

I know that David Fliger wasn't expecting all this attention so soon, that he'd planned on quietly perfecting his new place — not to mention easing into his career in the restaurant industry. But Latitude Eight's already showing early signs of success, and before long, Fliger will be an old pro. He's clearly a natural.